1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to apparatus for aligning wheels of a motor vehicle. More specifically, the invention comprises apparatus which is pinned down by the weight of the vehicle, and includes a ratcheting pulling device which engages the wheel and draws the wheel into a desired position.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As motor vehicles are driven in ordinary use, their wheels inevitably encounter bumps and obstructions in the road which over time cause the wheel to depart from predetermined orientation to the chassis. This condition is known in the field as being out of alignment, causes greatly accelerated tire wear, and may impair steering of the vehicle. To correct this condition, trained personnel must mount the vehicle on an apparatus which is capable of measuring discrepancy of each wheel from the predetermined factory specification. The wheel is pulled into a position corresponding to the specified position, and is tightened in this position.
Force considerably greater than that readily achieved by hand is required. For this reason, professional aligning equipment may include powered pulling or pushing elements, or both, which may be temporarily brought to bear on the wheel, in addition to measuring apparatus for determining correct position.
Wheel alignment tools are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,778,401, issued to E. D. Wilkerson on Jan. 22, 1957, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,598,620, issued to Pedro A. Servones on Feb. 4, 1997. Both of the subject devices brace against the wheel or suspension receiving adjustment. However, neither subject device includes a ratchet, and neither is anchored by a member disposed below and receiving weight resting on the wheel being adjusted. Although the brace of Wilkerson engages its associated wheel near the ground, very little weight bears effectively on an anchoring member. By contrast, the present invention includes both a ratchet device and a member disposed below and anchored by weight of the wheel being adjusted.
U.S. Pat. No. 336,189, issued to Nicholas White on Feb. 16, 1886, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,451,202, issued to Forrest A. Miller et al. on Sep. 19, 1995, describe pulling devices employing ratchets. However, neither of the latter two prior art patents includes a member disposed below the object subject to pulling forces for anchoring the subject pulling device. Neither of these prior art patents includes a hook suitable for engaging a wheel of a motor vehicle, as provided in the present invention. Further, neither prior art invention has a brace hinged to the ratchet mechanism, as has the present invention.
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.